Essay Edited

The main idea of my concentration series is domestic abuse against women. I know women who have survived abuse, and I know it could happen to me. My series follows the cycle of domestic violence. In my series, I explored the feelings and thoughts of women who are abused, fighting to survive, and learning to escape. Women who are abused often turn a blind eye to their reality. They often feel mute, and believe no one will listen. These women feel scared and trapped, not knowing that they have the strength to rip the cage open and escape. In my images, I used value, contrast, and color to transmit a mood.

My first three photographs are black and white. In the third image, we begin to see into the hidden life of the victim. She hides behind crossed arms, but her defiant expression shows that she is strong. She is looking away from the camera because she is afraid to admit her reality. Contrast and strong lighting show that she pretends her life is bright, but her reality is dark. The dark lines of branches and shadows show that she is caged.

In my second group I added color to show the victim’s feelings. This group begins with a bruised girl. The bruises are revealed when the disguise of happiness and invincibility is stripped away. In the last images she accepts her reality (image 8). My last image from this group is of the girl layered with a purple and orange image of a plant. The girl is staring into the camera with a fierce expression. She knows her strength and ability to break free from any cage.

My last group contains photo stories. The diptych of the smiling woman shows hope for a bright future, new beginning, and her success at escaping from the dark. The last image is a summary of the broken cycle. The image of the car mirror shows her escape, the flame shows the danger she was in, and the image of her laughing shows her relief.

I began to create my series by taking portrait, close up, and background images. I edited my images using Photoshop. I first made them black and white, then began to layer them with images. I created diptychs and photo stories. I explored different ways to layer my images to find ways to edit them so they’d tell a story. I then chose my final twelve.

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